The Usual SuspectsGroup AnalysisAmechi Macfoy Aimee AbandoPaul Ndawula

The movie begins by establishing a setting in the aftermath of a shootout at a boat on a pier. The scene ends with the boat being set on fire.

From here on, most of the story is told by Verbal Kint to Customs Agent David Kujan after he receives immunity from prosecution from the DA.

FBI Special Agent Jack Baer investigates the fire at the pier. He questions one of the two survivors, a hospitalized Hungarian criminal named Arkosh Kovash. The man only speaks in Hungarian and so the agent has a doctor translate. During this investigation, Kovash speaks of a man named Keyser. The investigation at the hospital appears several times as they try to identify this man called Keyser

Six weeks earlier in NYC, Verbal and four other men are arrested for the hijacking of a truck carrying gun parts. These men are notorious criminals and are thus known as the Usual Suspects.

While in custody, McManus convinces the others to join forces to commit a robbery targeting New York's Finest Taxi Service.

After the successful robbery, the men travel to Los Angeles to sell their loot to “Redfoot” who persuades them to rob a jeweler.

After robbing him, they find heroin instead of gems. After an angry confrontation with Redfoot, the men find out that the job came from a lawyer named Kobayashi.

The men meets Kobayashi who claims to work for Keyser Soze and blackmails them into stopping a large cocaine deal.

In the present, Verbal tells Kujan about Keyser Soze.

In this shooting, the Keaton find out that there is no cocaine on the boat which raises the question of what was really being done.

Keyser proceeds to kill everyone on the boat after killing a man who was being protected.

The men go to the pier and attack the men who were engaging in a deal.

Message The only thing a person can be sure of is

what he sees for himself Soze’s fabrication of what happened on the pier Soze’s killing of the only man who could identify

him

Sub-Plot Keaton’s relationship Police corruption

Excessive force in arresting main characters New York’s Finest Taxi Service Keaton

Motifs Pile of Debris at the Pier Lighter and the cigarrettes

Metaphors Soze is supposed to be a human like every

other criminal but in the movie he becomes something more.

Motivation These men live dangerous lives in the

pursuit of money, not expecting to die. Keyser Soze makes them fear for their

lives.

Characters Dean Keaton – an ex corrupt cop on the New York Police

Department. He seems to have changed when he fell in love with his lawyer, as he was hesitant to join the four in the robbery. However when Keaton joins in on the robbery, it shows that he really hasn’t changed. He is considered the leader. He is older and wiser than the other four.

Roger "Verbal" Kint- a crippled man. Verbal is considered the man with the plan as he comes up how to stage the robbery. Verbal seems to be the closet with Keaton out of the group. Verbal seems to be the coward of the group. In the end it reveals that Verbal has been faking his cripple state.

U.S. Customs Special Agent Dave Kujan- questions Verbal back at the office. He seems to be obsessed with taking down Keaton. He is persistant in trying to get the answers he wants from Verbal. He is determined to finish the investigation.

Michael McManus- McManus brings the group together for the heist. He and Keaton seem to clash a lot during the movie. He is hard headed and won’t take no from Keaton.

Mr. Kobayashi -Keyser Söze's right-hand man who has information on all five men. He seems to not show any fear when dealing with the five. For example when they tried to kill him, he didn’t show any fear of death or them

Edie Finneran, Keaton’s lawyer and Keaton's girlfriend FBI Special Agent Jack Baer he is investigating the boat

explosion on the pie and questions the Hungarian criminal in the hospital. He is the one who discovers who Keyser Soze because the picture is faxed to the office and he receives it.

Sergeant Jeffrey "Jeff" Rabin he is Kujan’s colleague who is present when Kujan is interrogating Verbal

Redfoot the Fence He gives the five men a robbery job in California and later brings them in to contact with Kobayashi.

Important Scenes Turning Point: The scene where Kujan tells

Verbal he knew it was Keaton all along that brought the five together and that Keaton was the mastermind behind everything. Verbal confesses to knowing so. This scene is important because we think it’s the end and that the investigation could be put to rest but apparently not. We think it’s the resolution and that everything is answered.

Epiphany: The scene where Kujan is sitting in his office after his interrogation and he looks at the board. He sees old criminals and old investigations. He then begins to realize how those things from the board matched up with Verbal’s story. He then came to a conclusion that everything Verbal said was a lie when he dropped his mug and the mug shattered revealing the bottom where it was marked Kobayashi.

Setting The Pier- the main robbery or heist was in the pier. This is

where the remaining four men came to take the shipment of cocaine but it was revealed that there wasn’t any cocaine on the ship. Instead it was just a hit job to get rid of the man who can identify Keyser Soze.

The Hospital- in the beginning the special agent brings in a Hungarian Criminal into the hospital because he is badly burned. The movie switches from Verbal’s interrogation to the flashbacks and to the scenes at the hospital. In the hospital scenes we see the agent and doctor’s trying to speak to the man and getting a description of a man that is Keyser Soze.

The Investigation Room- during most of the movie we see the conversations between the agent and Verbal in the agent’s office. The majority of the movie scenes we see Verbal speaking and then we see a flashback.

Quotes The scene that Verbal walks out of the

police station and we see him walking down the street. The camera only show us his feet while he is walking down the street. Not to mention a car is following him as he walks. So the feet as he is walking we see that he walks as a cripple the first few steps then his footings get better til he starts walking normally.

He stops and pulls out a cigarette and lighter and the car following him stops next to him. He gets in the car and then we see the agent walk out of his office and looks for Verbal. Verbal as he drives away says, “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he never existed and like that he is gone.”

The End The Usual Suspects is a good story with a

unified plot and observable truths.